Gatsby/Bluest Eye Notes

Gatsby

Societal Expectations-Classy Wealth: Use wealth to do classy things-Old Money: Born into money-Showiness-Pervasion: Wealth must pervade every aspect of your life-Conformity

Characters-Gatsby: Society changed him; literally bought into society’s expectations-Daisy: Born into society, but not 100% into it like Tom-Tom: Absolutist, conviction without thought-Jordan: Typical

Perception-Tom – All reality-Jordan – All Appearance-All friendships based on appearance (no mourners at Gatsby’s Funeral)

Bluest Eye

Societal Expectations-Be White, or be subordinate

Characters-Geraldine: Ashamed by her race, believes she is better and acts “white”-Maureen: Corrupted by purity, corrupts the girls

Perception/Reality:-Perceived inequality-In truth, equal

Ryan ThomasAmerican Lit. Honors6/10/08

Out of the Blue

In the proverbial eleventh hour of junior year, after steadily trudging through studies of literary eras and wading through the pages of occasional novels, students were very likely shocked out of their stupor by their final assignments. Two books, both classics and both moving and completely open, were thrust upon them, almost simultaneously. If either were the type of novel to be savored and digested, this would have been a pity – but not so. These were the sickening, scalding books, the books that exist to cut the reader so deeply and harshly that they cannot be forgotten; their words scar over in soft, as of yet unscathed minds, to be healed away only when their lessons have been irreversibly ingrained. Though some do try to revisit the books, and do gain from this, they are the ones whose experiences bring meaning to words that before stayed unnoticed; for the young and the naïve, the books are too potent to necessitate re-reading. The only benefit for these readers lies in trying to sort out the words freshly implanted in their hearts, rather than allow them to fade into dull confusion. And with such books, meaning is best gathered by finding not simply the truths within each, but the truths that they share, that are universal, though shown through different lenses.

The Great Gatsby and The Bluest Eye both speak to readers with similar messages, and share similar aspects – their main similarity lies in the issues they examine. Both uniquely approach expectations of their own societies, both do this through showing the impacts of these expectations on characters, and both deal with the differences between how these characters are perceived and who or what they truly.